Coach body and the like



J. F. LEGER..

COACH BODYAND THE LIKE- APPLICATION FILED MAY 2;. 1914.

Patented Jan. 24, 1922.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

mus rum mwssms. BELGIUM. assrenon. TO soont'rn FRANCAISE nmrnocznns oonro," or NEUILLY-SUR-SEINE, rnnncn ooncn BODY AND THE Lrxn SpecificationofI-etters Patent. P te t Jam 4, 1922 Application mean 21, 1914. Serial No. 840,088.

(GRANTED UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF THE ACT 01' IARCH 8, 1921, 41 STAT. L, 1313.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J ULES FIACRE Lnenn, retired officer, a subject of the Kingdom of Belgium, residing in Brussels, Belgium, 81 Rue Thiefrey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Coach Bodies and the like; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanyin drawings, and to letters or figures of re erence marked therein, which form a part of this specification.

The present invention relates to an improved method of constructing walls, linmgs, panels, roof coverings, and the like and relates more particularly to the construction of coach bodies formotor cars, tramway or railway wagons, or generally all other vehicles or means of conveyance. The method of construction as applied to coachwork obviates all the difficulties found with the present construction of coach bodies of sheet metal or of panels of wood.

The main troubles inherent in these latter constructions are 1. When sheet metal is used, the metal plates are fixed only at the butts, and that operation is often effected with great difficulty, whilst in many instances the whole of the parts of the body or frame are not united together and after a short time the metal sheets or plates work loose and vibration, with its attendant disadvantages, occurs.

2. When wood is used for coach bodies, the wood often cracks and the joints of same give way under the action of moisture and heat.

3. In both cases the materials are conductors of heat and of sound, they do not unite all the parts of the body or carcass together and they do not serve to consolidate the structure.

In accordance with the present invention the frame of the vehicle is lined with a metal trellis work, of varying size of mesh, fixed to all the ortions of the frame of the vehicle and a apted exactly to the contour and the profile of the coach body to be formed; this adaptation of the trellis exactly to said contour and profile is effected entirely manually, without submitting the trellis to any mechanical work such as hammering, stamping, etc. ,The whole of the trellis work is then covered and filled or made solid by acoating of incombustible material, which forms a unitary structure and does not conduct sound or heat. After hardening the material may be planed, polished and varnished, or it may be treated industrially or ornamentally in any other manner.

The coating or covering can with advantage be made by preparing a mixture .of which the basis is magnesia,Canadian fibres, corkwood, wood pulp, asbestos, talc and sulphate of barium, to which materials is added a solution of chloride of magnesium in order to bind them.

The following proportions by weight may be mentioned, by way of example, as being excellent for the formation of a monolith or single-piece covering of the aforesaid description Magnesia 1. Canadian fibres corkwood 1:}, wood pulp 1, asbestos a}, tale and sulphate of barium &. All these substances, which may, or may not, be crushed or powdered, as desired, are mixed intimately together. and a sufficient quantity of chloride of magnesium, at a density-of 15 to 30 degrees, is added to them in order to bind them.

A good covering may also be obtained by using certain only of the substances above named-that is to say, from among them may be chosen some which. with a basis of magnesia, will form a covering material possessing the essential qualities of being incombustible and a non-conductor of sound, etc., as enumerated above.

The coating or covering material thus obtained, being of suitable consistency, is applied to one of the sides of the wirework or metal trellis with a trowel, a brush, or in any other fashion. After that first coat has hardened and dried sufliciently, the opposite surface of the wirework or trellis is likewise coated or covered, so as to fill up completely all the interspaces in the trellis and to obtain two flat adherent surfaces forming a wall, made of material all. in one piece and reinforced with a metallic trellis or wirework. After drying, that wall or surface can be planed, polished, painted or varnished, or it may receive any other decorative ornamentation.

In order to obtain a monolith mass which is adapted exactly to the most varying contour and the profile of the coach body to be formed, the metallic trellis ,which forms the skeleton of the covering, has to be stretched upon the framework of the coach in such a manner that the trellis may receive manually without any mechanical work such as hammering, stamping, etc., the profile of the coach body.

It is also necessary (a) that the monolith mass be integrally joined at all points and the most completely possible to the framewvork upon which the'metallic trellis is attached (b) that a suliicient space be provided at all points between the trellis and the framework, in order that the mass may be introduced into this space and solidify itself therein.

These features are attained accordingly to this invention in attaching upon the framework of the coach-body rushes of small diameter, these rushes being arranged in such a manner that the surface which would enclose them, be adapted exactly to the rofile and contour of the coach-body. pon these rushes is set a metallic trellis or wirework of. a single piece, which trellis is stretched upon the whole framework and receives manually the necessary curves, bendings and fiexures for adapting it to the exact profile of the coach body. Owing to their substantial circular section, these rushes are advantageous in giving to the monolith mass a perfect grasping between the trellis, the rushes and the framework.

The trellis is, after it has been attached to the framework and received the desired form, out along the lines of opening or bays for doors windows and the like; along the edges of these bays is provided a leaf of wood or other material integral with or fixed in any way to the framework of the coachbody; these leaves constitute a model for the applying of the monolith mass to the metallic trellis or wirework. A

In order that the invention may be more readily understood the accompanying drawings show in Fig. 1 a portion, seen from the exterior, of the framework of a motor car framework. and in Fig. 2 a similar portion seen from the interior, these figures rendering clear successive stages of the operation.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view along the line A-B Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates the framework of the car body, 2 designatcs the rushes of small transverse. size,

which are nailed by the flat headed nails 3 or otherwise fixed to the framework 1, in such a manner that the surface which would enclose these rushes be exactly the contour which the car body has to be adapted to, these rushes are thus distant one from another and arranged accordingly to the contour of each particular car body. The framework of the doors and other movable parts having been left closed, thus the trellis will affect no solution of discontinuity tl'or all the contour. The trellis is stretched as a single piece upon the whole contour of the framework and attached to this preferably by means of hooked nails 5 lodged over the rushes. The stretching of the trellis or wirework is obtained manually and without submitting it to any mechanical .work as hammering, stamping or the like; by the only altering of its meshes the trellis may be adapted to all forms and contours of every kind of coach-body; it has been experimented that a. framework with meshes of 2 to 3 inches for example may receive all bendings, all forms and flexures, that it may be bent to all surfaces.

The metallic wirework or trellis thus stretched and fixed in the profile of the coach body to be coated, it is cut along the joint lines of the openings or bays for doors and other movable members; referring to the drawings, the wirework will be out along the line 6-6.

The metallic wirework or trellis is then coated by means of a trowel, brush or other ways, with above mentioned mass; the thickness of the mass to be applied is indicated by a model which is disposed along different lines of the coach body; this model consists of a sheet of wood or other material made integral'with or fixed by nailing or otherwise to the framework 1; a similar model 7, Fig. 3 is provided around each bay for movable member such as door or the like, in order to not submit the monolith mass directly to frictions and shocks of the movable parts. After the mass which has been applied on one side of the trellis is partially dried, the small cubes of mass which have passed at the other side through the trellis are scraped until near the trellis, and a layer of monolith mass is applied thereto.

Along the joining lines of the movable parts, such as doors and the like, are arranged wooden lamels previously impregnated with oil; the monolith mass does not attach itself tothese oiled lamels and thus the movable parts can be opened.

After complete drying of the mass, the same is treated as above stated.

A coach body formed according to this invention offers the following very great advantages over the existing systems of coach work 1. The panels or linin pieces thus formed are all in one piece, wit out joint, and they adapt themselves exactly to the most difficult shapes and profiles; they are flexible, stron and resisting, non-conductors of scan and of heat, and incombustible.

, 2. The coach body is consolidated, owing being to the fact that all the parts of the frame are united one with another by the trellis, and are thus made into a solid whole so that they are no longer susceptible of any movement, strain or dislocation. It thus becomes possible to diminish very sensibly the scantlings of the parts used in the frame.

3. The material of the covering may be worked similarly to wood and t ie're is a saving of about 50% in paint.

4. Repairs in case of accident are extremely easy to effect and do not necessitate the dismounting of the damaged panel. In case none of the material used should be to hand at the moment for repairs, after touching up, taking the dents out of, and repairing the trellis or wirework, the covering material may be replaced by some other adhesive substance, such as mastic, cement, or the like.

5. The mounting and the execution of the coachwork according to this invention can be efl'ectecl with a considerable diminution of hand labour, with economy and rapidity, and materials of smaller scantlings and of less cost can be used.

This invention also does away with the necessity of maintaining vast workshops for mounting coach bodies, also the need for a considerable and costly installation of tools and for highly )aid expert labour.

It will be nnclelstood that the invention may be applied to all descriptions of vehicles, such as motor, railway, tramway or be applied to the formation of other structures such, for example, as cabins or the like, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Claim Method of constructing coach bodies and the like, consisting in fixing upon the framework a number of rushes, the enclosing surface of which is exactly the profile and contour of the coach body'to be constructed, in applying upon these rushes a metallic trellis, in stretching the latter and giving it manually, without mechanical work as ham mering, stamping or the like, the exact contour of the coach body, in cutting the trellis along the joining lines of the movable parts, and in coating it on the two faces successively with a paste made of non-combustible material being a non-conductor of sound in layers the thickness of said layers being indicatec by wooden laniels which are integral with or are fixed to the framework along the lines of the bays or the essential lines of the coach body.

In testimony that I claim'the foregoing as my invention, I have signed my name in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

' 'JULES FIACRE LEGER.

lVitnesses EUGENE VANDENPLAS, FELIX DE COOMAN. 

